But his elevation to the leadership of the senior side still came as a major shock given it's come just four months after his international debut.

At the age of 23 and 123 days, Markram is the 10th-youngest male captain in ODI history and the youngest South African behind legendary skipper Graeme Smith, who was appointed in 2003 at the age of 22.

Smith was elevated to the captaincy early in his career // Getty

But in terms of inexperience, Markram tops the lot.

Of the nine men to have captained their country at a younger age, only former Bangladesh skipper Rajin Saleh (19 games) played less than 20 ODIs before taking over the captaincy.

And of the 21 men to have been named captain before their 24th birthday, only two - Hong Kong's Jamie Atkinson and Zimbabwe's Terry Duffin - played less than 15 games before becoming skipper.

The elevations of Atkinson and Duffin came in exceptional circumstances as well; Atkinson first captained his country in 2014, six years after his debut, in what was Hong Kong's third-ever ODI, while Duffin was essentially one of the last men standing after the bitter Zimbabwean player dispute in the summer of 2005-06.

But apart from the early days of one-day internationals when inexperienced captains were unavoidable - for example, Australia's Bill Lawry and England's Ray Illingworth captained on debut in the first ever ODI in 1971 - Markram stands apart.

Markram bats against India in the first ODI // Getty

Not that he vocalised any concerns when he was unveiled as skipper on Saturday.

"Yes, it can be an intimidating thing, but the culture in the team is so good," he said.

"It allows for a young player like myself to go and engage with a guy like Hashim Amla, who's a legend of the game. It makes it a lot easier for me, it's not something I see as intimidating.

"I'll keep Hash close to my side in the field, and obviously other experienced players as well. It's going to be something very exciting, it's going to be a new challenge. But it's a positive challenge to look forward to."

Selector Linda Zondi said Markram's elevation has come with a view to taking the side forward beyond the 2019 World Cup given the past three ODI captains - du Plessis, Amla and AB de Villiers - will all be older than 35 at the end of next year's tournament.

"Part of our plan is to also build that pool of leaders within the set-up," Zondi said.

Markram celebrates a half-century on ODI debut last October // Getty

"I think Markram has always been in our plans since he was U-19 captain, leading up to SA A, and now joining the Proteas.

"Yes, there will be pressure in terms of him maybe understanding his role and also being able to perform as a player.

"For us, we want to see if he can handle pressure, because part of leadership is to be able to adjust and perform under pressure. We think he has the right skill and the right capability to do so."

ODI CAPTAINS AGED 24 OR YOUNGER(matches played before captaincy debut)